Iraq: Just the beginning?

Just in case you missed it, Iranian Defense Minister Ali Shamkhani announced today that Iran has successfully test-fired the latest prototype of Shahab-3 missile.
"Iran has upgraded the former version of Shahab-3 guided missiles and successfully test-fired it in a military defense shield exercise," Shamkhani was quoted as saying.
"The missile has proved stronger in terms of destruction and precision at guided targets," the minister added.
On Aug. 11, Tehran announced a successful test-firing of an upgraded version of the Shahab-3 missile, which, military experts estimated, had a range of 1,300 km and was capable of striking targets in Israel and Europe.
Remember George W.’s post 9/11 “enemies list” that included Iraq, Iran and North Korea?
How short-sighted does the Iraq invasion seem now in light of a looming nuclear threat from Iran?
I, for one, am pleased that we have more than 100,000 of the best-trained, best-equipped troops the world has ever seen positioned just minutes from Iran.
Has it occurred to anyone else that an unstated objective of the Iraq campaign was the acquisition of bases from which we could better deal with the rogue states of the region?
Naturally, it would have been foolish to state this up front as a reason to remove Saddam and conquer Iraq, but it’s looking more like a brilliant move with every passing day.
Yes, the insurgency in Iraq has made things a little messy and a short-sighted media has fixated on it at the expense of seeing the big picture.
Kudos to the Bush administration for thinking more than one move ahead in this chess game we dare not lose.
Another astute blogger pointed out this week that we have a 25-year-old score to settle with the mullahs of Iran - a little matter of Americans held hostage because a Democrat president couldn't command their respect. Or fear.
As I've said earlier, those who seek to destroy us should understand that - with our use of precision munitions and our concern for civilian casualties - what the world has seen so far is "us being nice." They don't ever want to see "us not being nice."